Benitez to replace Bilic – What the papers said about Newcastle's demolition of West Ham

0Shares

The Mirror

“Three defeats out of three for Bilic’s side and they were not functioning as a competitive outfit.

“West Ham have been a long term admirer of Rafa Benitez but he comes with a £5m compensation fee which the Hammers don’t like paying.

“Bilic needs something to hang on in the next few games or he will be the first boss under big pressure.

Gazette Live

“In the build-up to this match, Bilic – who is desperately in need of an upturn in results to secure his future at the London Stadium – appeared to try and take a swipe at Benitez and Newcastle’s summer transfer dealings,” Chris Waugh writes for Gazette Live.

“Perhaps that is because Benitez is among the favourites to succeed Bilic in east London should the Croatian be dismissed, but the fact was that Benitez did not bite.

Read More

“On the touchline, meanwhile, both managers were extremely animated throughout the match; Bilic looked nervous, while Benitez looked as intense and focused as usual.

“This result has lifted some of the gloom on Tyneside and reinforced Magpies’ fans love for Benitez, while Bilic’s stock continues to fall.”

Read More

The Guardian

“Newcastle’s first league goal of the season seemed to remove much of the early tension from their play, dictating that passes were no longer snatched or mis-placed,” says Louise Taylor for The Guardian. “. Indeed, by half time they were settling into something approaching a rhythmic passing groove.

“Poor Rice looked out of his depth and it came as no surprise when he was replaced by Manuel Lanzini at the interval. Not that this switch had much impact on the balance of power as Newcastle’s continued superiority manifested itself in Joselu – by now heading for cult-hero status among the Gallowgate End – creating a chance for Ayoze Perez, whose left-foot shot was well saved by Joe Hart.”

Read More

Newcastle 3-0 West Ham

BBC

“Rice, 18, was taken off at half-time, seemingly because his confidence was shattered after the mistake that led to Newcastle’s opener.

“He was consoled by Hart straight after the goal, but the teenager knew the significance of his mistake in a side that was also short of confidence.

Read More

“Their best chances came after the break when Rob Elliot blocked Aaron Cresswell’s effort and took the sting out of Javier Hernandez’s follow-up before Clark cleared the ball off the line.

“The international break will give Hammers boss Slaven Bilic time to work out why it is not clicking for his side.”

Read More

The Telegraph

“Slaven Bilic’s brutal summary of West Ham United’s latest defeat illustrated why he is the overwhelming favourite to be the first managerial casualty of this Premier League season,” explains John Wardle for The Telegraph.

“‘It was a very difficult afternoon,’ Bilic said after a series of errors contributed to a defeat that could have been even more decisive. ‘Newcastle were better than us in every aspect of the game. They simply had more power, more determination.’

“And that, remember, is a Newcastle team that had not collected a goal or a point in two league games before meeting opponents whose mistakes were punished by goals from Joselu, Ciaran Clark and Aleksandar Mitrovic.”

Read More

Is Slaven Bilic the right man to lead West Ham forward? Let us know in the comments below.